Darren

Star Trek: The Next Generation – We’ll Always Have Paris (Review)

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Darren

To celebrate the twenty-fifth anniversary of Star Trek: The Next Generation, and also next year’s release of Star Trek: Into Darkness, I’m taking a look at the recent blu ray release of the first season, episode-by-episode. Check back daily for the latest review.

It’s hard to believe that we got this far into the show without a Picard-centred episode. Sure, the original Star Trek was reluctant to probe too deeply into Kirk’s background, but Star Trek: The Next Generation had already demonstrated that it was more willing to probe the histories of characters like Data (Datalore), Worf (Heart of Glory), Yar (Code of Honour and The Naked Now) and Troi (Haven). Star Trek shows, by they nature, tend to gravitate around their leading actor, and Patrick Stewart has been shown to hold the show together through sheer force of will at certain points. However, We’ll Always Have Paris marks the first time we’ve really delved that deeply into the character of Captain Jean-Luc Picard.

While we don’t peer nearly deeply enough, it’s fun to base an episode around Patrick Stewart, and time-travel was always a fun story-telling device on The Next Generation.

Picard's love life is solid as a rock...

Love on the rock…

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Filed under: The Next Generation | Tagged: arts, Heart of Glory, Holodeck, jean-luc picard, kirk, Naked Now, Next Generation, patrick stewart, picard, star trek, Star Trek Next Generation, star trek: the original series, Starfleet, William Riker | 3 Comments »

12 Movie Moments of 2012: Throwing the Toys Together (The Avengers)

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Darren

As well as counting down the top twelve films, I’m also going to count down my top twelve movie related “moments” of 2012. The term “moment” is elastic, so expect some crazy nonsense here. And, as usual, I accept that my taste is completely absurd, so I fully expect you to disagree. With that in mind, this is #9…

The Avengers had its share of problems – it was weirdly paced; the Hulk’s character arc seemed to come a bit out of left field; Loki had no real sense of motivation; the film effectively undermined the wonderful ending to Thor; it didn’t really deal with any of the questions raised by Nick Fury’s actions; and Disney insisted that we call it Marvel’s Avengers Assemble in this part of the world, in case my grandmother might show up and wonder where “the nice chap with the umbrella” had gone. However, it also had its strengths, and these strengths were rooted in the fact that director Joss Whedon was keen not overly intellectualise the premise or the characters, and accepted the glee of knocking all those iconic toys together.

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: avengers, captain america, Dark Knight Rises, hulk, joss whedon, loki, marvel, marvel comics, nick fury, thor, Whedon | 1 Comment »

The Spirit Archives, Vol. 23 (Review/Retrospective)

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Darren

You know that The Spirit is in a state of declining health when even the back cover concedes that, “by the second half of 1951, The Spirit was winding down.” Still, having read the collection from cover-to-cover, I find it quite difficult to disagree. The Spirit Archives, Vol. 23 provides an interesting study of a comic strip coming to terms with its own mortality, but there’s also a sad sense that the magic is slowly evaporating from Will Eisner’s iconic creation. We are no longer watching a beloved comic strip missing a few steps. Instead, we’re watching a slow and painful deterioration.

I gather, from the look on his face, he has read the strips…

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Filed under: Comics | Tagged: alan moore, Dolan, Eisner, Jules Feiffer, Santa Claus, Spirit, The Spirit Archives: Volume 12, United States, Will Eisner, world war ii | Leave a comment »

My 12 for ’12: Jeff Who Lives at Home & Living in Hope

Posted on December 23, 2012 by Darren

I’m counting down my top twelve films of the year between now and January, starting at #12 and heading to #1. I expect the list to be a little bit predictable, a little bit surprising, a little bit of everything. All films released in the UK and Ireland in 2012 qualify. Sound off below, and let me know if I’m on the money, or if I’m completely off the radar. And let me know your own picks or recommendations.

This is #9…

The eponymous Jeff, from Jeff Who Lives at Home, feels like something of a cousin to the Judd Atapow “manchild” that we’ve seen popularised in films like Knocked Up of The 40 Year Old Virgin. He’s unreliable, lazy and smokes a not inconsiderable amount of pot. His mother can’t even count on him to fix a shutter door on her birthday, although he is quick to offer seemingly vacuous philosophical insights garnered from Star Wars and Signs. His brother Pat is hardly a run-away success, trapped in a failing marriage and prone to sit around Hooters all day, but at least he has thrived when compared to Jeff. Jeff is, by all accounts, a fool whose own naivety leads him to get beaten and mugged within the first half-hour of the film.

However, at the heart of Jeff Who Lives at Home, is a surprisingly romantic idea. There’s the notion that the universe is somehow a far more compassionate and understanding place than we might suspect. Jeff’s logic and reasoning might be far from convincing, and it’s easy to be cynical. However, Jay and Mark Duplass craft a story that suggests sometimes things work out just right.

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Filed under: On Second Thought | Tagged: 40 Year Old Virgin, arts, British Isles, christmas, Christmas music, Father, film, Filmmaking, Hooters, Ireland, Jeff, Jeff Who Lives at Home, Knocked Up, Lykke Li, Mark Duplass, Movies, Oh God!, Pat, Sharon, Short film, star wars, twitter | Leave a comment »

Star Trek: The Next Generation – Skin of Evil (Review)

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Darren

Skin of Evil is a mess of an episode. It’s a whole bunch of concepts thrown together, and executed in the most ridiculous and banal manner possible. There’s a lot of the disparate elements of Skin of Evil that could easily work if handled properly. Most notably, the idea of a character dying in the line of duty rather than as a hero is a fascinating one, and the eponymous monster could be an interesting twist on the “god-like beings” we seem to stumble across once every couple of weeks in the Star Trek universe. However, Skin of Evil winds up feeling the one thing it should be impossible for an episode like this to be. Despite all the different stuff happening involving all the different characters: it’s boring.

A slick operator…

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Filed under: The Next Generation | Tagged: Beverly, Beverly Crusher, Data, Denise Crosby, Encounter at Farpoint, Gates McFadden, Geordi La Forge, Health, J Abrams, Jadzia Dax, james t. kirk, Marina Sirtis, picard, Riker, Ro Laren, Shopping, Skin of Evil, star trek, Star Trek Next Generation, star trek: deep space nine, star trek: the original series, William Riker, Yar | 7 Comments »

12 Movie Moments of 2012: Joseph Gordon-Levitt Makes It Big (The Dark Knight Rises, Premium Rush, Looper)

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Darren

I know that Joseph Gordon-Levitt has been around a while. I was fond of the actor back when he was appearing on Third Rock From the Sun, which already seems like a lifetime ago. More recently, he appeared in perhaps the best romantic comedy of the last decade, (500) Days of Summer. He has been running his own production company, hitRECordjoe since 2009. Even last year the actor was headlining movies like 50/50. As such, it feels a bit disingenuous to suggest that he really burst on to the scene this year, but 2012 has been a great year for the actor, and it’s always great to see a deserving young talent emerge.

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Filed under: Movies | Tagged: arts, batman, Christopher Nolan, dark knight, Dark Knight Rises, Gordon-Levitt, HitFix, Joseph Gordon-Levitt, justice league, Looper, Movie, Premium Rush, Rian Johnson | 4 Comments »

The Spirit Archives, Vol. 22 (Review/Retrospective)

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Darren

There’s a sense that Eisner and his staff knew that the end was rapidly approaching. Narratively speaking, there’s a lot of different elements here that suggest – at least unconsciously – an effort to tidy up The Spirit so that it could be neatly folded up and put away. Eisner hadn’t completely abandoned his creation to its fate at this point, but it seemed like he was well aware that the strip might not continue forever. The Spirit Archive, Vol. 22 seems a bit more reflective than the editions that came before, acknowledging that the worm is slowly turning.

Gun to my head, I’d say the strip is in trouble…

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Filed under: Comics | Tagged: batman, central city, China, Eisner, Eisner Award, Ellen, First Man, Octopus, Spirit, Spirit Archive, The Spirit Archives: Volume 12, Tibet, United States, Will Eisner, World, world war ii | Leave a comment »

Non-Review Review: Quartet

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Darren

Quartet is an entertaining light comedy, and a solid directorial début from Dustin Hoffman. The film itself isn’t too surprising or demanding, but – as The Best Exotic Marigold Hotel demonstrated earlier in the year – there is something to be said for putting a bunch of older actors together in a room and letting them remind you what they can do. Quartet is a fairly standard “life doesn’t end at retirment” film, and one that makes smart use of a talented ensemble cast. Indeed, as the credits roll, we’re reminded of just how talented as Hoffman introduces us to each of the performers – many of whom have long and impressive careers in theatre or music.

There’s nothing here that will surprise anybody, but it is occasionally nice to be reminded just how superb some of the older generation of actors can be.

… in with the old…

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Filed under: Non-Review Reviews | Tagged: arts, Best Exotic Marigold Hotel, Billy Connolly, dustinhoffman, film, Hoffman, Maggie Smith, michael gambon, Movie, non-review review, Pauline Collins, Quartet, r eview, review, Tom Courtenay, Tom Courtney | Leave a comment »

My 12 for ’12: Room 237 & The Death of the Author

Posted on December 22, 2012 by Darren

This is #10…

Room 237 is a fascinating look at Stanley Kubrick’s The Shining. It has been described as “the best DVD extra ever made”, and it definitely succeeds as a lighthearted (but incisive) exploration at one of the best horror films ever produced. While it works on that level, Room 237 works even better as a demonstration of what Roland Barthes termed The Death of the Author, the awkward relationship that exists between a piece of art, its creator and the audience watching it.

On a larger scale, Room 237 is the story of how a film can be appropriated by people, and how sometimes the real cinematic magic unfolds in the gap between the screen and the audience watching it.

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Filed under: On Second Thought | Tagged: Creepshow, Daily Express, Death of the Author, games, Gareth L Powell, Ireland, kubrick, London, los angeles, Minneapolis, Quinch, Rodney Ascher, Roland Barthes, shining, stanley kubrick, stephen king, vhs | 2 Comments »

Winners of the 2012 International On-Line Film Critics’ Poll

Posted on December 21, 2012 by Darren

The International On-Line Film Critics’ Poll has just published the winners of their 2012 poll. I was honoured to take part, and I was very glad with most of the results. You can read the nominations here, but the winners are listed below. The superb Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy was the biggest winner – winning Best Film, placing on the Top Ten Films, taking home Best Director, securing Best Actor for a very deserving Gary Oldman, along with Best Cast and Best Adapted Screenplay to boot. A host of other wonderful films (including The Master) did very well as well.

Results after the jump.